If there was anything Yata disliked with the passion of a thousand suns, it would have to be a certain Scepter 4 officer.
Said officer was his age – younger by a few months even –, wore glasses and had a distinct arrogant manner of speech. His odeur reeked of treason and calamities and whoever decided to put their lives in the hands of that guy was the biggest idiot the world had ever known. At least, that was what Yata saw him as. A stupid monkey and a total fucking prick. He would never want to be associated with a bunch of blue robots either.
So when Munakata called him to his creepy air-conditioned blue office, the redhead was less than amused. After the typical formalities coming from Scepter 4's King and his blonde Lieutenant heading out to 'prepare lunch', Yata demanded Munakata cut to the chase. Fushimi was missing.
And he had been chosen to find him.
"You want me to do what?" Yata repeats in disbelief. Munakata is sitting in front of him behind his wooden desk and unlike the younger male, he has a calm smile on his face.
"I've heard a lot about you, Yata-kun," he begins, "In regards to your friendship with Fushimi-kun that is. If my information is correct, you two used to live together for a while."
Yata grits his teeth. "Yeah, and so what? Just because we were comrades in the past doesn't mean I'm willing to go out and find him for you! HOMRA doesn't work together with Blues! Go find him yourself!"
Munakata pushes his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "I expected such a reaction from you, Yata-kun, but do not misunderstand. We have looked for Fushimi-kun more than once the past few days and, though he has been my subordinate for more than a year now, I don't know his mannerisms half as well as you do." His gaze doesn't leave Yata's alone for a second. "It has become a rather serious issue, you see. We value Fushimi-kun as an important vassal."
Yata doesn't know how to respond. On one hand, he's wary about the Blue King's plans. On the other, it bothers him that Fushimi has gone missing. If nobody is able to find him, does that mean he's...?
The vanguard scoffs and stands up. "Fine. But it better be worth it." he manages with mild reluctance. He has barely said it or Munakata's polite smile makes a comeback.
"Thank you very much, Yata-kun." the Blue King responds, just as the doors to the office open. "We of Scepter 4 will ensure to provide you with extra forces if needed."
Yata huffs at the answer before turning to see who has come in. It's the Lieutenant, whose ample bust in his direct line of sight prevents him from looking at her for more than two and a half seconds. Seriously, how the hell do those huge, round things grow on a woman's body?
"Here you go, Captain," Awashima sets a bowl filled to the brink with anko (which looks fucking disgusting by the way) on his desk, along with a cup of tea, then turns to the vanguard. Her icy yet concerned gaze causes him to make a strangled sound. Another blush covers his cheeks and he fidgets with his sweater, mustering up just enough courage to send her a glare. "W-What is it?"
She gestures towards the purple substance in the bowl, which has even Munakata stare in suspicion. "Would you like some anko as well?"
Fuck these weirdass Blues and their weird food. Yata has left the mansion before either of Scepter 4's high-ranked officers can even blink. Now all that's left for him is finding the monkey. The redhead ponders about his possible whereabouts as he skates back to bar HOMRA. The park? No, Fushimi doesn't like mingling with strangers. The mall? Nope, too noisy for him. The library? Another miss, Saruhiko isn't interested in books.
"What the fuck does he like anyway?" Yata curses, ignoring the confused looks bypassers give him as he races down the street. Then a brilliant idea pops into his head. Anna's marbles.
"Sorry I'm late, Kusanagi-san!" Yata calls when he barges in. "Is Anna around?"
Kusanagi looks up. "Good to see you too, Yata-chan. And yeah, Anna is here. She was just helping out Totsuka in the kitchen. Why?"
"Nothing important!" Yata rushes into the kitchen, finding the two clansmen standing in front of a large pot and making curry. Both are wearing equally frilly aprons. Yata doesn't know where to be amused or horrified of Totsuka dancing around in that pink disaster.
"Already hungry, Yata?" Totsuka smiles at him. "Don't worry, dinner will be ready soon. Thanks to Anna the curry has turned out really delicious!" He waves around the wooden spoon without realizing there is still food sticking to it. Yata is able to evade the stew flying towards him just in time and turns his attention to the young Strain instead. He didn't come here to eat.
"Anna, I need your help." he requests. The girl looks up at him, doll-like red eyes already seeming to know why he looked so restless.
"Why, Misaki?" she asks nonetheless.
"I need to find Saru."
Minutes later the four of them are standing around the table, three red marbles rolling across Shizume City's map. Yata knows how the system works. Once they come together and do no longer move, Anna has found the person she is looking for. This time, neither of those things happen.
"Saruhiko... I can't find him." Anna mutters after another fruitless attempt. Yata feels his entire body break out in cold sweat.
"Wait, does that mean he's... He's dead?"
Anna shakes her head. "I don't know." she replies. "It looks like he has disappeared."
"Fuck." He can't believe it. This was supposed to be an easy job, but now that idiot just decided it would be fun to vanish into thin air!
"Yata-chan, what is all this commotion about anyway?" Kusanagi asks, confused by the sudden turn of events. "You just came in here without offering any kind of explanation."
But Yata has gone off into his train of thought. If Saruhiko really has died- No, don't even consider that shit, Yata, the guy's a walking and talking lump of disaster and eeriness. Sure he can fend off anyone messing with him on his own.
The redhead decides that all he can do for now is try and find him. Not everyone has access to such an accurate GPS system like Anna's anyway, there's still hope. Fushimi is lucky he cares enough to put effort into his search.
"Sorry, I've got things to do! I'll explain everything once I get back, promise!" And he rushes out with board and bat just as sudden as he arrived, leaving behind a befuddled trio.
The sound of thunder rumbling above him should have been an indication to head home, yet Yata doesn't pay attention to the soft rain drops depleting on his hair. At eleven PM the pavement is no longer crowded, unlike the road beside him with its never-ending stream of cars and motorcycles. He is almost about to give up his search, almost wants to hang his head and retreat to his apartment, until he hears laughter from an alley near him. The voices belong to a group of men, it seems, with bad intentions. Yata really doesn't want to bother anymore at this point, but he needs to vent his frustration on something. So, taking care of local thugs it is.
The redhead looks around the corner and is indeed met with the sight of five drunk men taking turns in beating someone up. In short, a bunch of fucking losers. Yata sighs and steps off his board, letting his bat scrape the stone pavement underneath his sneakers. The men stop laughing and look up, bewildered gazes spotting the teen. It doesn't take long for their leader to have an asinine grin split his face in two. A golden tooth shimmers among the others.
"Beat it, kid," he orders, fingers still retracted into a fist, "This ain't a place for little boys like you."
The originality was far to seek in this abandoned alley reeking of cigarettes and trash. Yata doesn't even yell at this point, having heard the insult too many times to still get offended. His scowl, on the other hand, is far more threatening.
"I ain't got time for this, y'know. Leave the dude the fuck alone unless you want me to turn all of you into a bloody mess."
The golden-toothed gang member seems surprised by his language, but doesn't back away. "Oh really? Tough language for a scrawny brat, but I bet ya don't even know how to use that weapon of yours."
Yata smirks. "Fine then, you piece of shit. I'll make sure to prove my point to you by shoving your friends so far up your ass you'll have constipation problems for the rest of your ugly-ass life."
"You really piss me off, kid!" the leader laughs, pulling a knife out of his pocket. "A fight to the death it is then!"
Yata cracks his knuckles. "Sounds fucking good to me." he spits, not granting his opponent an opportunity to retort. In less than a second he smacks the knife out of the man's hands, followed by a dropkick in his neck. The older male's legs tremble, then he falls on the ground knocked out cold. At this point Yata's entire body is enveloped by his red aura, and just a simple glare is enough to scare off his fallen provoker's buddies. They run out of the alley way as fast as they can, screaming things like 'He's from HOMRA!' and 'He's gonna destroy us!'. Well, he gladly would've done just that, but he had more important stuff to deal with. Yata sighs and rakes a hand through his wet tresses, at last taking a look at the victim. He blinks and squeezes his hazel eyes shut, trying to check if his sight is trying to betray him. It isn't.
Saruhiko's blue coat is ripped and his glasses are lying crushed next to him. Furthermore, his cheek is bruised and there are bleeding wounds above his eyebrow, on his chin and his forehead. Yata feels a tremendous weight lift off his shoulders because thank god, the bastard is still alive. Unconscious, but alive. He kneels down next to the male and shakes his shoulders in an attempt to wake him up. Saruhiko's eyes open for a moment, and he seems to recognize his savior.
"Yata..." he mumbles, only for his lids to droop and close again. Yata is startled. Did he just call him by his last name? Well, whatever. That's the least of his concerns now. He picks up the Scepter 4 member and pulls him onto his back, heading into the direction of his apartment. The rain doesn't stop pouring, only seems to grow stronger bit by bit as he follows the path of street lights with Fushimi clung onto him.
Once inside Yata carries his former comrade to his bedroom and drops him on the bed. The absence of Fushimi addressing him by his first name still bothers the vanguard. It's a given that whenever they cross paths, the blue monkey takes pleasure in drawling a 'Misaki' over and over again until said Beautiful Blossom would snap. He always did, no matter the situation, and Yata was getting used to it. But this time, Saru didn't.
Yata sits down next to the futon and watches him. Saruhiko's chest moves up and down at a steady pace, and over time it becomes harder for the redhead to keep his own eyes open. In the end he was still located in Shizume City, contrary to what Anna predicted earlier. That means the reason behind Saruhiko's initial disappearance from the map requires a lot more investigation than he thought. And how did that idiot end up in that alley way? All these questions piling up take a toll on Yata, and he is about to stand up when Fushimi's hand reaches out to grab his shirt. His pale skin bears an uncanny resemblance to snow at this point but he has enough power left to pull the vanguard down. Yata gulps.
"... Why am I wearing this?" Saruhiko questions, nodding towards the uniform covering his lean body. "It looks just like the thing the Blues wear."
"Come again?" Yata's bug-eyed expression is the essence of surprise. "Are you shitting me, Saru? You put that thing on yourself!"
Saruhiko scowls at him. "Do you honestly think I'd even consider doing that? I'm a part of HOMRA, remember?"
"What the fuck are you blabbering-" And then it hits Yata. Saruhiko might as well not be lying or teasing him just to get a reaction.
"So... Does that mean we're friends? Comrades?"
Saruhiko sighs. "Don't be an idiot. Of course we are. Also, I suppose I have to thank you for saving me back there."
Yata can only hear the first part of his answer. A strange warmth he hasn't felt in a while hits him and he's unable to respond. At that point, he realizes two things.
One: Fushimi has lost his memory.
Two: No fucking way is he gonna inform Munakata about this.
